Hey. Could we do that again? I know we haven't met, but I don't want to be an ant. You know?

Monday, 10 June 2013

Films This Week

(Click
here to read my general introduction to the 'Films This Week' series of
posts.)

﻿

Signs of Life

02/06/13

Watched Bedlam. It's good, but it
feels like a lesser work somehow. Apart from final shot of Karloff waking up as
he's being walled in, nothing really stands out. Also, the positivity of the
ending doesn't quite ring true – it seems at odds with the unbending pessimism,
the bleakness, that's gone before it (both in the film itself, and in the rest
of Lewton's oeuvre). Death is good, and there is darkness in everyone.

07/06/13

Went to see Signs
of Life, which felt like the kind of small film that I see at EIFF (and
which is then never seen again). It definitely becomes a different kind of film
halfway through, and I think it was the first half I really responded to: the rhythm,
the mundanity, the absurdist humour. But that's not to say the second half
wasn't enjoyable too. The photography is also beautiful throughout, and what a
location! A very strong debut.

08/06/13

Went to see Behind
the Candelabra. Soderbergh's on good form this year (this might be even
better than Side
Effects). I found it quite terrifying – there's something almost vampiric
about Liberace. But there's a lot of fun to it, and by the end it's very
moving: its exploration of power, ego and image never overshadows its simple probing
into human relationships. Michael Douglas is terrific (I'd somehow never taken
in how good he is, or maybe he's just better here?). I'm very pleased to hear
that Soderbergh already has plans to make more TV.